Decide the Next Product Teardown for the Drafting Table Quarterback

What really matters in the design decision making process?

Curious minds of any age can testify to the joy of taking apart a beloved object to see how it works. Under the guidance of Randy Tyner, our Drafting Table Quarterback, we're honoring this tradition with a series of teardowns by designers for designers. In our first installment, we had a side-by-side comparison of a product near and dear to any design student, homeowner or design professional: the 18v cordless power drill. We compared the styling, housing, tooling and assembly of a Ryobi and a Makita drill to find out if there was really a difference between competing brands.

Dear Core77 reader, it's now your time to shine. We have to ask:

What product should we teardown next?

VOTING HAS ENDED BUT THE ORIGINAL CHOICES ARE BELOW:

Wireless SpeakerJuicerBidet AttatchmentDroneActive Stylus

Bigger questions regarding the purpose of creating new products should be considered during the ideation and production process. This is where a product teardown can come in handy—learning why designers and engineers have made certain decisions can help you navigate your next project.

Here's a breakdown of the products we're interested in exploring and why:

Enter a caption (optional)

Wireless Speakers

What are the key elements of an audio system that contribute to a speaker's sound quality? As speakers have moved from massive, wired audiophile equipment to lightweight, bluetooth-enabled throwaways, what strategies do companies employ to ensure the best sound? To what extent does the shape of the speaker or the materials chosen affect the performance of the product? A teardown of wireless speakers will definitely appeal to any music lover, but any designer interested in how the relationship between external and internal elements of a design contribute to its overall quality should vote for this.

Enter a caption (optional)

Juicers

There's so much debate fueling the cult of juicing and blending; like, what's the difference between a "centrifugal" vs. a "masticating" juicer, and is one really better than the other? Also, Nutribullet's "nutrition extracting system" term is a slightly irritating farce (it's a blender guys). Either way, we are interested in learning more about what components in juicers make it a high-quality product, and can we find an explanation as to why juicers still demand so many non-dishwasher friendly parts? In a potential product teardown, we could explore the mechanical functions of one of these machines to see if the quality of the design is really worth the price.

Enter a caption (optional)

Styluses

How does an active stylus stand out from the rest? How much do the internal components contribute to responsiveness and ease of use? In the end, does a top-notch stylus have more to do with the electronics, the form, or a perfect marriage of both? An interesting product that involves both careful technical and form consideration, the stylus is a prime candidate for a teardown.

Enter a caption (optional)

Bidet Attachments

Another question you may have never thought about before, but now that you mention it: how do those amazing Japanese toilet bidet attachments work? With so many luxurious functions, any Westerner who has managed to run into one of these leaves mystified and amazed at its wonder. Perhaps with a proper product teardown, we could learn more about its functions and even brainstorm on ways to improve its intuitiveness and style.

Enter a caption (optional)

Drones

They say to keep your friends close and your enemies closer—what better way to prepare for impending drone doom than to take one apart and better understand how they work? All jokes aside, this new widespread technology is an interesting product with plenty of mechanical functions worth exploring.

Vote above for the product you'd love to see torn down! After you've voted, leave us a comment to tell us what you voted for and why.

The Drafting Table Quarterback waxes poetic about speaker design

Welcome to the second edition of the Drafting Table Quarterback. In this series, we tear down a product and analyze it from an Industrial Design perspective. In this edition, by popular demand, we are tearing open the new Beats Pill Plus. I know this is a teardown article but

A Brief Introduction to Core77's Product Teardowns

When designing a product, designers face challenges from many different camps both within the company and externally. Good designers and good designs handle these challenges and create products that add value and delight for the people that use them. This series will take some of the products we, as designers,

Ryobi vs Makita Cordless Power Drill Showdown

In this installment of the Drafting Table Quarterback, we have a side-by-side comparison of two products near and dear to any design student, homeowner or design professional: Two 18v cordless power drills. We picked these Ryobi P817 and the Makita XPH012 not because they are the most popular or highest